Toronto Crosstown LRT | ?m | ?s | Metrolinx | Arcadis

[ssiguy2]

When Eglinton opens in 2035, we will see how serious Toronto is about REALLY putting the needs of transit users over drivers. With today's technology they should be easily able to run trains every 4 minutes in each direction and, even with the ridiculous number of stops, not have to make a single stop for any intersection light. If Toronto wants to put transit first, this line could be just as fast as a grade separated one.

There is absolutely, positively NO reason why any of the LRTs should encounter a red light anywhere along the route

 

[lead82]

Oh the LRTs will hit every red light and then stop at the stop after the light. This is the Toronto standard. We slow down cars and streetcars and LRTs. Watch and let’s ee

 

[hw621]

When Eglinton opens in 2035, we will see how serious Toronto is about REALLY putting the needs of transit users over drivers. With today's technology they should be easily able to run trains every 4 minutes in each direction and, even with the ridiculous number of stops, not have to make a single stop for any intersection light. If Toronto wants to put transit first, this line could be just as fast as a grade separated one.

There is absolutely, positively NO reason why any of the LRTs should encounter a red light anywhere along the route

Oh the LRTs will hit every red light and then stop at the stop after the light. This is the Toronto standard. We slow down cars and streetcars and LRTs. Watch and let’s ee

Lest forget the idiots who drive onto the tracks, collide with trains and press the emergency stops for no/trivial reasons...

 

[CapitalSeven]

Oh the LRTs will hit every red light and then stop at the stop after the light. This is the Toronto standard. We slow down cars and streetcars and LRTs. Watch and let’s ee

Don't forget that they will only cross the road after the left-turning cars, because apparently in Toronto it's impossible for left signals to have anything but first dibs.

 

[innsertnamehere]

When Eglinton opens in 2035, we will see how serious Toronto is about REALLY putting the needs of transit users over drivers. With today's technology they should be easily able to run trains every 4 minutes in each direction and, even with the ridiculous number of stops, not have to make a single stop for any intersection light. If Toronto wants to put transit first, this line could be just as fast as a grade separated one.

There is absolutely, positively NO reason why any of the LRTs should encounter a red light anywhere along the route

I mean I get the negativity over the opening of the Crosstown, but I certainly hope it will be opening before 2035.

 

[jmi22]

Do me a favor. Cross the street against the light in front of a streetcar going 60 KPH.

I am sure you will be fine when it takes you out.

Do we make buses go through intersections at 10km an hour? Is general traffic crawling through intersections? Genuinely what is your argument?

 

[jmi22]

This may very well be true, but letting that factor into our traffic management policies is dangerous, and breeds the exact culture of stupidity that "necessitates" LRTs to slow down for intersections.

Exactly, if this really is true then every lrt project in the country should be scrapped ASAP. Any form of on street transportation that supposedly necessitates a near full stop at every intersection regardless of the signal is not a viable form of urban transit. I'd also like to note that our massive existing streetcar network that runs though the most pedestrian dense streets in the country move through intersections at speed (except for where switches lay) and yet we do not see a half dozen pedestrians bouncing of the front of streetcars daily, and this is in mixed traffic where sight lines of the streetcars are obscured by parking and other vehicles on the road.

 

[Jonny5]

I would be shocked if even one single streetcar in Toronto has ever passed 60 kp/h this entire year, and I might push that out to the past ten years if not for that one late night in an ALRV on the 301 at 2:00 a.m. which cleared Long Branch to Humber so fast I seriously was concerned the back section was going to derail several times.

 

[T3G]

Exactly, if this really is true then every lrt project in the country should be scrapped ASAP. Any form of on street transportation that supposedly necessitates a near full stop at every intersection regardless of the signal is not a viable form of urban transit. I'd also like to note that our massive existing streetcar network that runs though the most pedestrian dense streets in the country move through intersections at speed (except for where switches lay) and yet we do not see a half dozen pedestrians bouncing of the front of streetcars daily, and this is in mixed traffic where sight lines of the streetcars are obscured by parking and other vehicles on the road.

I will disagree with one thing - we do slow down on the streetcar network. I don't remember what they do on mixed traffic lines, it's been an age since I rode one, but the Harbourfront car slows at EVERY intersection. I mean good grief, it's one thing to be cautious during poor visibility or even at night, but if you try to tell me that in broad daylight, a professional transit driver can't see a car approaching the track from a decent distance away, I would advise you to shake your head.

The car crawls up the slope out of the tunnel, goes barely faster than walking speed towards York Street, slows even more right before the crossing with York Streey in case our well paid professional driver somehow doesn't see a car approach, then goes barely faster at walking speed onward. Rinse and repeat.

 

[Parkdalian]

I imagine that the drivers don't want to go fast. Having your streetcar involved in an accident likely means you'll get told off by your superiors, you''ll have to do paperwork, and you might get screwed over in scheduling. You might get transferred to buses. (The horror!) Why risk all of that just so that you can finish your route a few minutes faster?

From a commuter's perspective, I'd MUCH rather prefer that a streetcar/LRV is NOT involved in an accident, and if that means drivers drive more slowly, so be it. We don't want the whole line messed up because of a moron trying to beat an LRV through an intersection!

Transit priority makes sense, but city planners seem very stuck on not making it happen. If any adult human can fix this, we should probably build very large statues of them.

 

[Bojaxs]

From a commuter's perspective, I'd MUCH rather prefer that a streetcar/LRV is NOT involved in an accident, and if that means drivers drive more slowly, so be it. We don't want the whole line messed up because of a moron trying to beat an LRV through an intersection!

From a commuters perspective, I want these trains to go as fast as they possibly can. Time is money.

If these LRVs don't move noticeably quicker than the downtown streetcars, than this entire project was an abject failure on every metric and we'd have been better off building a subway instead.

Edit: Thought you were talking about the Eglinton line. Didn't realise you were talking about the streetcars in general.

 

[drum118]

I will disagree with one thing - we do slow down on the streetcar network. I don't remember what they do on mixed traffic lines, it's been an age since I rode one, but the Harbourfront car slows at EVERY intersection. I mean good grief, it's one thing to be cautious during poor visibility or even at night, but if you try to tell me that in broad daylight, a professional transit driver can't see a car approaching the track from a decent distance away, I would advise you to shake your head.

The car crawls up the slope out of the tunnel, goes barely faster than walking speed towards York Street, slows even more right before the crossing with York Streey in case our well paid professional driver somehow doesn't see a car approach, then goes barely faster at walking speed onward. Rinse and repeat.

The problem coming out of the Bay tunnel to York St that it's a short distance with a probability of hitting a red light. Even if green, too short of a distance to get the speed up to only slow now for the stop west of York.

Speed been reduced for the ROW with the fear of Jaywalkers as well clueless pedestrians trying to cross at intersections against red lights and not stopping on the south side of the ROW on a red.

Have been on the Queen and King cars where drivers have exceeded the speed limits even in the days of the old fleet as well.

There is no reason CT cars can't reach the speed limit between stops in the ROW like they do in Europe. Don't expect to see it today until the summer once some track issues are dealt with if there are any there now.

 

[T3G]

Having your streetcar involved in an accident likely means you'll get told off by your superiors, you''ll have to do paperwork, and you might get screwed over in scheduling. You might get transferred to buses. (The horror!) Why risk all of that just so that you can finish your route a few minutes faster?

And this is different from any other form of transit how...?

 

[T3G]

From a commuter's perspective, I'd MUCH rather prefer that a streetcar/LRV is NOT involved in an accident, and if that means drivers drive more slowly, so be it. We don't want the whole line messed up because of a moron trying to beat an LRV through an intersection!

I find this to be a false dichotomy. Again, in broad daylight, you can see things around you. If there is heavy pedestrian activity, or you can see a car approaching, by all means slow down. But if there's nothing there, why have the vehicle slow down anyway? Makes about as much sense as having a bus run at a slower speed even when there is no roadworks, in case there might be roadworks. I'm just waiting for my next ride on the Harbourfront car, where a driver misses their light because they slowed down for a ghost car.

 

[reinventingthewheel]

I say put a big ol’ plow on the front of these LRVs. If they go speeding through an intersection with straight tracks and no switches then they can safely bash through small motor vehicles without LRV damage or shearing on the rails. A little whiplash will be fine for passengers, builds character!